Forex - GBP/USD extends gains, hits fresh daily high

Forex Pros – The pound extended gains against the U.S. dollar in thin trade on Monday, rising to a fresh daily high, while markets in many European centers remained closed for the Whit Monday holiday.

GBP/USD hit 1.6324 during European early afternoon trade, the daily high; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.6310, gaining 0.52%.

Cable was likely to find support at 1.6130, the low of May 25 and resistance at 1.6382, Friday’s high.

The pound regained ground lost on Friday, after official data showed that U.K. industrial output contracted sharply in April due to the extra public holiday for the Royal Wedding and supply chain disruptions caused by the Japanese earthquake.

The weak data reinforced expectations that the Bank of England is not likely to raise interest rates this year.

Meanwhile, the greenback remained under pressure amid uncertainty over future U.S. monetary policy ahead of the end of the Federal Reserve’s quantitative easing program at the end of the month.

The pound was also up against the euro, with EUR/GBP shedding 0.29% to hit 0.8815.

Later in the day, European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet was to speak at an event in London, while BoE policymaker Martin Weale was also to speak.




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